God's Panacea

Come, sit, and enjoy a cup of tea or coffee in the comfort of the Lord:  "Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice."  Ephesians  4:31

                 "Bless the Lord, O my soul . . . . . who healeth all thy diseases."  Psalm  103:2

     The promise of God to heal all our diseases has been grossly misunderstood and misinterpreted.  It can be viewed as applying to the disease of sin as well as to actual physical illness.  There are those who use this verse to prove that anyone can be cured of bodily illness by faith, or being anointed with oil, laying hands on a radio, or sending for a handkerchief.  If this were true then everyone who did this would be healed, for the Scripture says, " . . . who healeth all thy diseases."  There is no room for failures in this sense.  The word all excludes any exception.  It is of course true that in every case of recovery it is because God has so willed it.  But there comes a time in everyone's life (everyone) when their physical sickness is not healed - and they die.  Only when Jesus comes will this verse be fulfilled - He healeth all thy diseases.  Until then all will continue to die, in spite of the foolish claims of men.

     But the reference here is to the disease of sin, as the context will show.  Sin is compared to sickness.  Isaiah says of Israel,  " . . . the whole head is sick, and the whole heart faint.  From it; but wounds, and bruises, and putrifying sores"  (Isaiah 1:5,6).  Before seeking physical healing we should seek spiritual health.  All physical cures are temporary - ending in death - but spiritual healing results in eternal life!

     I am often asked by doctors,  "Aren't you sometimes sorry you left the practice of medicine and the healing of men's bodies - left a noble profession to become a despised preacher?"  My answer is always no! All the patients I used to treat died sooner or later, but the people who take the medicine I now offer them (the Gospel) never die.  The cure is permanent, and gives eternal life.  The Gospel is God's panacea!

"Bread For Each Day"

The Gospel In Action

Come, sit, and enjoy a cup of tea or coffee in the comfort of the Lord:  "Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice."  Ephesians  4:31

                             " . . . I will shew thee my faith by my works."   James  2:18

     Only God can see "faith" in the heart of man.  People see our faith only by our works.  Faith is like a seed planted in the ground.  It is hidden from view but if it is a living seed it will soon manifest itself by pushing its stalk up through the soil for all to see.  We may talk about our "faith" from morning till night without results, but when that faith works, men must recognize it.

     Out of the war comes a story of faith in action.  A godly chaplain in the army found a dying soldier on the battlefield, and being anxious about his salvation he took out his Bible and said,  "Shall I read a portion of Scripture to you?"  But the soldier replied,  "No sir, I am thirsty and need a drink of water."  At the risk of his own life, amid bursting shells, the chaplain went in search of water and having found some, gave it to the wounded man.  Then he asked again,  "Shall I read some Scripture to you?"  But the man replied,  "No thank you, I am so cold, I am almost freezing."  The chaplain removed his own coat and wrapped it about him, and once more asked with shivering body and chattering teeth,  "Now may I read to you?"  Again the reply was  "No sir, I am too uncomfortable on this rough ground."  The chaplain gently lifted him up and placed him across his knees with his head in his arms and once more asked the same question.  "Yes sir,"  he replied,  "for if what you are going to read can make a man willing to risk his life like this to ease a dying stranger, I want to hear about it!"  And there on the battlefield he was told about Jesus who died that we might live.

     This is the Gospel in action.  It is what the world is waiting for today!  Amid the clamor of religious cant the world is looking for a cup of cold water in the Master's name.  Faith without works is dead.

"Bread For Each Day"

Simple Remedies Are Best

Come, sit, and enjoy a cup of tea or coffee in the comfort of the Lord:  "Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice."  Ephesians  4:31

" . . . He will surely come out to me, and stand, and call on the name of the Lord his God, and strike his hand over the place, and recover the leper."   2 Kings  5:11

     Naaman the Syrian was a leper.  He heard about a prophet in Samaria, of whom a little captive Jewish girl had told his wife.  When he came to Elisha, the prophet simply told him to go wash in Jordan seven times.  This seemed so childishly simple that it made Naaman very angry and he started back home.  He expected a great display of occult mumblings and grotesque movements on the part of the healer.  He wanted a dramatic spectacle of acting, but the prophet said,  "Just take a bath!"

     The same superstition still prevails in the world today.  People reject the Gospel because salvation is too simple.  They too expect noises, visions, lights, and feelings before they will believe.  But the Bible says,  "only believe."  It just seems too simple.  The Gospel needs no embellishment.  That is the pagan way.  They go through all sorts of contortions, cooking strange brews and mumbling unintelligible phrases.  It is all a "cover up" for their deception.  The Gospel needs no "props," jazz music, foreign costumes, tricks, or juggling acts.  Paul told Timothy,  "Preach the word."

     The world is full of quacks and nostrums.  They recommend a remedy because of its strange ingredients.  "Only Poo-Poo Powders contain CKLZ."  "Four out of five doctors recomend the ingredients in this Sucker Syrup."  "Dumb-Clux Dope"  contains  not one ingredient but five - and so on, and so on.  And the more mysterious it is, the more it deceives.  This is true of much religious excitement; people are sold another gospel which is "not another."  Beloved, let us not be led astray by the pageantry and display of much "modern evangelism."  The pure gospel message has not lost its power - it only needs to be set free from the fleshly methods of the world.  "Preach the Word!"

"Bread For Each Day"

Prescribing A Placebo

Come, sit, and enjoy a cup of tea or coffee in the comfort of the Lord:  "Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and alamour, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice."  Ephesians  4:31

             " . . .  nevertheless, being crafty, I caught you with guile."  2 Corinthians  12:16

     When Mrs.                came to me for treatment of a very exciting and exceedingly rare illness, I prescribed a placebo.  Do you know what a "placebo"is?  You probably have taken some and they helped you.  But if you had known it was a placebo you would have been very angry at your doctor.  So the doctor didn't tell you what he was giving you.  But we must get back to Mrs.              .  She enjoyed very poor health.  She was never so miserable as when she couldn't find anything wrong with herself.  One day she read about a sickness she had never had.  She liked it and promptly developed all the symptoms: headache, nausea, constipation, palpitation of the heart, blurring eyes, etc., etc., etc., and she called me to come immediately as she thought she was dying.  Upon examination I found nothing wrong with her.  She was as healthy as a carp in muddy water.  What do to for her?  That was the problem.  If I told her shew as not sick she would have been furious and discharged me for another doctor.  So I told her she was very ill (she was-in her head), but I would soon relieve her.  So I gave her a placebo - a whole box full of pretty pink pills - made of sugar - nothing but a few grains of milk sugar.  Take one every 15 minutes (keep her so busy taking pills she would forget her illness).  The recovery was spectacular.  Did I deceive her?  Yes, but it cured her. That is the doctor's business - to cure people - and if sugar does it - why not?

     Paul says he had taken the Corinthians by "craft" and "guile."  The word guile is dolos, and means "bait."  He had baited his hook to catch them for Jesus.  His conduct and love for them had won them for Jesus.

     Is your gospel hook "baited" for those you will meet on life's ocean?  Will you attract any souls to Christ today?  Or will you be "baited", "caught", hook, line, and sinker, by satan and his deceptions of "happiness"?

"Bread For Each Day"

Practical Christianity

Come, sit, and enjoy a cup of tea or coffee in the comfort of the Lord:  "Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice."  Ephesians  4:31

        "For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also."
                                                                                                               James  2:26

     Dorothy C. Haskin tells of a testimony meeting held in the south by a visiting Methodist minister.  At this service a woman arose and began to relate how much comfort her "religion" gave her in times of trouble.  "That's fine, sister," commented the visiting evangelist.  "But how about the practical side?  Does your 'religion' make you strive to prepare your husband a good dinner?  Does it make you keep his sock darned?"  Just then he felt a yank at his coattail; looking around he discovered it was the local pastor seeking to get his attention.  There was a smile on his face as he whispered hoarsely,  "Press dem questions, Doctor, press dem questions!  Dat's my wife!"

     Yes, we all need to "press dem questions" home to our own hearts.  The grace of God should do more than make us happy and satisfied, it should energize us to service and good works.  For instance, when God comforts us He does not do it just to make us comfortable, but rather to make us, in turn, comforters  (see  2 Corinthians 1:4).

     Faith alone is like a zero in arithmetic: no matter how often it is repeated, it represents nothing; however, when there is added to it the units of our good works, then our faith becomes meaningful to others and has practical value.

     Rev. J. A. Methuen once asked a simple Christian whether he thought it was possible for a child of God to live an ungodly life; he received the following answer:  "Mr. Methuen, if I pour boiling water into a cup, it makes the outside hot as well as the inside.  So, too, sir, when the Gospel once gets into a man's heart, the new life will soon show itself."

"Bread For Each Day"

Soap And Salvation

Come, sit, and enjoy a cup of coffee or tea in the comfort of the Lord:  "Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice."  Ephesians  4:31

         "And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?"  Luke  6:46

     A strange paradox is evident in our country today; for while statistics show a marked increase in church membership and there is unquestionably a religious awakening in the land, statistics show an even greater increase in crime and wickedness.  If the Gospel is the power of God unto salvation, this religious resurgence should evidence itself in its impact upon people's lives.  A great increase of interest in religion, without a corresponding decrease in sin and wickedness just doesn't add up.  Can it be that this religious fervor is only a pretext, caused by fear in this age?  A man sneeringly said,  "The Gospel has lost its power, for while thousands profess Christ, nothing much is happening as a result."  But it is not the fault of the Gospel.  It is because people make a profession but have no possession.  Coming forward, signing a card, joining a church - this is not salvation, but mere religious gesture.  It is not enough to say,  "Lord, Lord"; the Gospel must be practically applied, and not merely mentally endorsed.  We fear that too many who say  "Lord, Lord," have never had His blood applied.  It is not the fault of the Gospel.

     A preacher and an unconverted manufacturer of soaps met on the street.  Sneeringly the soapmaker said,  "The Gospel you preach can't be very good for there are still a lot of wicked people."  The preacher was silent until they passed a child making mud pies.  The tot was smeared with dirt all over.  Pointing to the little tot, the preacher said to his friend,  "Soapy, your soap can't be very good, for there is still a lot of dirt in the world."  "Oh well,"  said Soapy,  "it cleanses only when actually applied."  "Exactly!"  said the preacher.  The man was caught in his own trap.
   
     What is your faith doing in you and to you?

"Bread For Each Day"

The Darkness Of Hell

Come, sit, and enjoy a cup of tea or coffee in the comfort of the Lord:  "Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice."  Ephesians  4:31

                                   " . . . . they shall never see light!"  Psalm  49:19 kjv

     There is a certain horror about absolute darkness that throws a chill over the human soul; for man was made to live in the light!  Heaven is always depicted as a place of eternal brightness where there is "no night.." The psalmist, however, declares that the wicked shall "never see light" ; and Jesus warns that they shall be cast into "outer darkness"!  What a horror of blackness that will be when each doomed soul is curtained off from every other in an eternity of utter loneliness.

     Recently I was in a cave in Kentucky.  When we had gone deep into the bowels of the earth through many winding passageways, the guide suddenly turned off all the lights and said,  "I alone know the way out.  If I were to leave you in this dark chamber, you would probably never make your way to the surface.  Those who have been lost in this cavern have become insane inside of a week from the oppressive loneliness and the maddening, incessant drip of the water from the roof.  Be quiet for a moment and feel the darkness!"  I remember my youngster clutching my arm.  Soon terror began to edge its way into all of our hearts.  After about thirty seconds, someone in the party could endure the ordeal no longer and whimpered piteously,  "Turn on the light!  I'm going crazy NOW!"  The guide laughed, but none of us will ever forget that eerie experience.  I thought of the "outer darkness" of an eternal Hell and shuddered!

     An evangelist once encountered a skeptic who, when asked to receive Christ, said,  "I'm not afraid of Hell - all the Hell we get is here on earth!  The preacher's reply was quick and devastating.  "I'll give you three reasons why this cannot be Hell.  First, I am a Christian, and there are no Christians in Hell!  Secondly, there is a place just around the corner where you can slake your thirst, but there is no water in Hell!  Thirdly, I have been preaching Christ to you, and there is no Gospel in Hell!"  Friend, would you escape the eternal darkness of Hell?  Receive Christ who is the Light!

"Bread For Each Day"

"The Bread Of Life"

Come, sit, and enjoy a cup of tea or coffee n the comfort of the Lord:  "Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice."  Ephesians  4:31

                                                   "I am the bread of life."  John  6:48

     Jesus did not say,  "I am the 'filet mignon' of life,"  or  "I am the 'caviar' of life,"  for these delicate foods only the favored few can enjoy.  How thankful we are that He is bread - the poor man's staff of life.  There are many foods which are available only to a few, because of cost or because of their seasonable nature or scarcity.  But bread is the universal food of mankind.  It is found on every table - rich and poor - king and peasant.  whether it is made of wheat or corn or rye, oats or rice, it is bread, the cheapest and most nourishing food.  The word "bread" is defined by Webster as "food made from ground grain; food in general."  Bread represents all the elements of food needed to sustain life.

     Jesus is the "bread of life."  In Him are all the elements needed for a healthy, growing spiritual life.  He is within reach of all, His blessings are free.  The manna fell from heaven - all the Israelite needed to do was gather and eat it.  It was good for young and old.  It was a complete food.

     Charles H. Spurgeon has aptly said,  "I bless God that He gave us not a classical gospel, or a mathematical gospel, or a metaphysical gospel, or a gospel confined to scholars or men of genius, but a poor man's gospel, a ploughman's gospel, for that is the kind of Gospel we can live and die upon.  It is to us not the luxury of refinement but the staple bread of life.  We want not fine words when the heart is heavy, nor deep problems when facing eternity.  Jesus manifest in the flesh is our bread of life, Jesus bleeding on the cross a substitute for sinners is our soul's drink.  This is the Gospel for babes, and strong men want no more."  Yes, we thank God, Jesus did not say,  "I am the cake" - but rather,  "I am the bread of life."  It is free to all - good for all - sufficient for all!

"Bread For Each Day"